I don't think I'm eating enough to fuel my workouts.
yourfitnessenemy
Posts: 121 Member
MFP "gives" me 1200 a day, but since I started running 3x a week (30 minutes right now) I just don't feel like I have enough fuel to get through. My BMR is 1191. My TDEE is 1584. I'd like to lose 15lbs or so. I have no idea what I should be eating.
0
Replies
-
Are you eating back your exercise calories? What is your weight loss set at? With only 15 lbs to lose .5 lb a week is the recommended loss.5
-
Your MFP calorie target assumes no exercise...exercise isn't considered in your activity level...1200 calories is for a sedentary person...if you're exercising, you're not sedentary.
You should be accounting for your exercise activity and eating more.
How is your TDEE 1584...that seems really low.8 -
MFP assumes you will eat exercise calories back.3
-
honestly, Yes pay attention to calculators. But listen to TDEE not BMR- Your working out so you should be eating more. That said, Your body really is infinatly wise. Listen to it. Just be careful to be listening to your body, Not your mind or mouth. Takes some practice to learn true hunger and weakness etc caused by need for more food, Vs cravings and boredom eating. Especially at first, As fake hunger signals are common as a way to trick yourself into thinking its okay to eat more.
For example, if you think of a big plate of vegetables and it sounds good to you, And satisfying, Eat it.
If your thinking of something in particular, Maybe its just a craving specifically if its a less healthy food choice.
1200 calories is the very lowest end of healthy calorie amounts, Most people need more. Especially if exercising.4 -
I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.3 -
TDEE doesn't have anything to do with height (although age plays more of a factor) - I'm 5'3" and 35 and my TDEE is about 25005
-
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What do you do for work that makes you active?2 -
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What's your running schedule look like? Are you sleeping well?0 -
If your normal life qualifies as sedentary, leave that as your base setting. Add the running calories back on top of that.
Rule of thumb is that you will burn your body weight in pounds times the number of miles run times 0.63. So, if you are a 150 pound person and run 3 miles, you will burn 283 calories (150 X 3 X 0.63). At the very least, eat all of those calories back.
There's an old adage (maybe not so old, but it's an adage nonetheless) - you can either eat for weight loss or for performance. If you can't perform as you'd like on your runs, then the only solution is to up your calories. That said, this will slow your weight loss efforts. It's up to you to find the balance that you want.5 -
TavistockToad wrote: »yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What do you do for work that makes you active?
I'm a social worker, so I'm not particularly active at work. SO. . .now I'm confused, should I still be at sedentary?0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What's your running schedule look like? Are you sleeping well?
Right now my running schedule is only M-W-F for 30 minutes, I'll be increasing to 45min-hour soon. I'll start training for a 1/2 marathon over the winter. I'm sleeping ok, though I have to take melatonin.0 -
deannalfisher wrote: »TDEE doesn't have anything to do with height (although age plays more of a factor) - I'm 5'3" and 35 and my TDEE is about 2500
Interesting, I didn't know that! I got my TDEE from an online calculator so I don't know much I should trust it.1 -
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »deannalfisher wrote: »TDEE doesn't have anything to do with height (although age plays more of a factor) - I'm 5'3" and 35 and my TDEE is about 2500
Interesting, I didn't know that! I got my TDEE from an online calculator so I don't know much I should trust it.
I just did another calculator and it gave me 1730. That sounds more reasonable.1 -
I was struggling with having enough energy after doing fasting and started taking a BCAA drink - best thing I ever did, worked wonders. Just an idea.5
-
As you increase your running workload, you'll notice increased hunger. At your current 30 minute duration, its probably not an issue while running. As you train for the HM and your runs start to exceed say 90 minutes, you may need to fuel a bit before and even during the workouts in order to avoid a dropoff in performance. As others have noted, endurance training requires a significant amount of fuel. Finding the right balance is the key...and often takes a bit of experimenting.2
-
I eat a couple hard boiled eggs before I run. If I don't I run out of gas......1
-
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What do you do for work that makes you active?
I'm a social worker, so I'm not particularly active at work. SO. . .now I'm confused, should I still be at sedentary?
If you are using mfp, you set your activity level based on your non-exercise daily life. So probably sedentary. Then log your exercise and eat back some or all of the extra cals it gives you. And since you are smaller and only have 15 lbs to lose, you probably want to go with half a lb per week.
As far as what to eat, that can be highly individual. I don't run, but before a hike I eat something carb'ey with a bit of protein like yogurt and fruit or oats, or some nuts.
I find my legs get heavy and tired when I'm tired, so are you getting enough sleep?2 -
You don't need a huge amount of food before a thirty minute workout. Try a cheese and cracker snack pack just before your run and see how you feel afterwards.2
-
Since you aren't actually burning that many calories, it's probably more a question of what you are eating than how much. While protein helps you feel full longer, it doesn't help much for short term energy. I find I don't run as well after an egg breakfast as I do after oatmeal or cereal. You may also be having issues with dehydration. That can affect your energy significantly. Drink more water.1
-
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What do you do for work that makes you active?
I'm a social worker, so I'm not particularly active at work. SO. . .now I'm confused, should I still be at sedentary?
Sounds like sedentary to me, possibly light active if you walk much when you're out on visits?
Changing your rate of loss will give you more calories. Start with that.1 -
I am 5 feet 1" and my TDEE is 1500, BMR 1250. I work out 4 days a week. I totally understand your point. I feel drained during my work out but recently I started timing my meals in a way that I eat 60mins before my work out. Or sometimes even 30mins. It has made a massive difference to my work outs. Play around with food and timings and see what works for you. I don't think it is the calories. It is the long intervals between meals that might be making you feel low in energy.1
-
I think changing to half a pound a week loss is a good idea plus eating all your exercise cals back, if you lose faster than half a pound a week over the next month you are probably more active then sedentary in which case I would bump it up to lightly active. x I have a desk job but because I walk to work and average 7-8k steps a day I bumped up to lightly active and started losing at the rate I intended. I also eat all my exercise cals from my workouts although usually I spread them over the week.0
-
Eating about 15g of carbs before a workout can make a huge difference to your blood sugar, which can make working out easier. I usually have half a banana and a small glass of milk.1
-
Sedentary and 1/2 lb a week only gives me 1240 cals. Light active gives me 1400. I did light active but I'll aim for 1300 calories or so and see how that goes.0
-
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »TavistockToad wrote: »yourfitnessenemy wrote: »I am eating back my exercise calories.
My tdee is probably so low because I'm 5'2" and 42.
I had mine set at sedentary and 1lb per week. I changed it to active and 1/2 lb per week and will give that a try...
I'm not really having cravings particularly, but I feel really weak when working out. Not winded, just...weak, like I can't get through it.
What do you do for work that makes you active?
I'm a social worker, so I'm not particularly active at work. SO. . .now I'm confused, should I still be at sedentary?
If you are using mfp, you set your activity level based on your non-exercise daily life. So probably sedentary. Then log your exercise and eat back some or all of the extra cals it gives you. And since you are smaller and only have 15 lbs to lose, you probably want to go with half a lb per week.
As far as what to eat, that can be highly individual. I don't run, but before a hike I eat something carb'ey with a bit of protein like yogurt and fruit or oats, or some nuts.
I find my legs get heavy and tired when I'm tired, so are you getting enough sleep?
I get in about 8 hours of sleep, but it's not exactly quality sleep (I wake up a few times a night).
0 -
Almonds are key1
-
yourfitnessenemy wrote: »Sedentary and 1/2 lb a week only gives me 1240 cals. Light active gives me 1400. I did light active but I'll aim for 1300 calories or so and see how that goes.
And log your running and eat back those calories
. On some your off days, if you can, try going for walks. I found I had to increase my TDEE to stay sane, so I started taking a 15 min walk in the morning and another after dinner. Now I've worked up to a 30 min walk in the morning and 15 mins later, plus I workout 4 or 5 times a week. That got me to the point where I could eat 1450-1500 per day and lose half a lb per week. Hang in there! 0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.3K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.5K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 431 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.6K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.8K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions